Cigarette case



June 30, 1925. 1,544,045

J. P. SPEARS CIGARETTE CASE Filed Jan. 26, 1923 wml m Patented June 30, 1925'.

PATENT' OFFICE.

J. P. SPEARS, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CIGARETTE CASE.

Application filed January 26., 1923. Serial No. 615,066.

To all w/om it may concern:

Be it known thaty I, J. P. SPEARS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Cigarette Case, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cigarette cases one of its objects being to provide a de- 'v vice of this character having means for cjecting cigarettes one at a time, the ejecting means having an electric lighter adapted to ignite the cigarette during the ejecting operation.

Another object is to provide an electric lighter normally disconnected from the battery contained within the case, there being a circuit closer shiftable by the movement of the ejecting mechanism so as to place the lighter in circuit.

Another object is to provide a case having means whereby combustion is supported at the inner end of the lighted cigarette prior to its ejection, a suitable air hole admitting the necessary air to the case.

AWith the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims, it being understood that various changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sec- I tion through the device.

Figure 2 is a section on line 2-2, Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3, Figure 1.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, 1 and 2 designate the opposed halves of a casing indicated generally at C, each of these members of the casing be-l ing provided at one end with a semi-cylindrical portion 3, the two portions being hingedly connected at 4. -The meeting edges of the casing members preferably lap, as shown at 5 and formed within the meeting edges of the tops of the members are notches cooperating to form an outlet opening 6. This opening is located at the end of the casing so that a cigarette pressed against said end will aline with the opening. An air inlet opening 7 is formed in the bottom of the case substantially in line with the opening 6 so that air will be supplied to a lighted cigarette in the case for supporting combustion.

A cigarette container in the form of a narrow deep boX 8 is formed infor secured to one of the halves of the casing C, there being an end partition 9 forming one end wall of the container and serving to support said container out of contact with the bottom and side walls of the easing. The container projects beyond the open side of the member 1 in which it is formed so that when the case is closed said member will project into but be spaced from the walls of the member 2.

The bottom of the container 8 has an opening 10 therein in alinement with the opening 6 and the corners of the side walls of the container 8 are cut away adjacent this opening, as shown at 11. Formed in one side wall of the container 8 is a slot 12 in which is slidably mounted a lug 13 extending from one side of a followerl-t movably mounted between the sides ofthe container. Studs 15 project from the follower and engage springs 16 the opposite ends of which are mounted on studs 17 extending from the end wall or partition 9. The container 8 is deep enough to hold cigarettes on end arranged in a single row and the follower 14 is adapted to press against one end of the row of cigarettes so as to hold the cigarette at the. other end of the row in position between the two openings 6 and 10.

Straddling the container 8 is an elongated loop forming a lever 18, this lever being fulcrumed between its ends upon the outer facesof the side walls of the container 8, as shown at 19. A. resistance or lighting coil 20 is carried by one end of the lever 1 8 and is normally supported below the opening 10, as shown in Figure 1. The other end of the lever is pivotally connected to a head 21 yieldingly supported by a spring 22 and having an arm 23 extending therefrom and bearing normally against the top of the case.` A button 24 is extended from this rod through an opening in the case and a knob or enlargement is carried by the Inner end of the button as shown at 26 and constitutes a circuit closer. A battery 27'1s supported within the substantially cyl1ndrical end portion of the case and has one terminal connected by a wire 28 to one end of the coil 20. The other terminal of the battery is in the form of a spring 29 and a spring 30 is connected by. a wire 31 to the other end of the coil 20. The two sprmgs are close together and diverge and are so located that when the button is pressed inwardly the knob or enlargement 26 will en-` gage both springs and thus close the circuit to the coil which will thereby become incandescent.

If the container has cigarettes A therein one of them will be held positioned between the openings 6 and 10 as before explained. When the button 24 is pressed inwardlythe lever 18 will be actuated against the action of spring 22 andthe coil 20 will swing through opening 10 and into the space left by the cut away corners of the container. During this movement the co1 l will come against the end of the end cigarette and thrust the same longitudinally so as to project the other'end of said cigarette through the opening 6 as shown by broken lines in Figure 1. When the button `reaches the inner limit of its movement the circuit to the coil is completed and the coil will quickly become incandescent so as to ignite the cigarette end engaged thereby. The

button can then be released to allow spring 22 to return lthe lever and button to their normal positions. The cigarette can be removed and the end will be found lighted.

What is claimed is 1. The combination with a case, of an ejector therein, a lighting element carried by the ejector for contact `with the end of the article being ejected, a battery, and means operated by the actuation of the ejector for closing the circuit between the battery and the-lighting element.

2. The combination with a case having a cgaretteoutlet, a container in the case, and yielding means `for holding a cigarette in line with the outlet, of a lever between the case and container, a lighting element carried by the lever, yielding means for holding the lighting element normally outside the container, there being an opening in the container to receive the lighting element, a battery, and means foractuating the lever to eject a cigarette from the container and to complete a circuit from the battery to the lighter.

3. The combination withv a cigaretteA holder, of an ejecting lever, a coil upon the lever, a battery, means for shifting the lever to apply the coil to the end of a cigarette, and means operated by said shifting of the lever for closing a circuit to the coil from the battery to light the cigarettes. j

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

J. P. SPEARS.

Witnesses: 1

ADRIAN HUNT, EDWIN A. JEL'rz. 

